Peters



UNITED STATES,

PATENT OFFICE.

JOH w. D. MCDONALD, OF BEMBRIDGE, ISLE "on wienr, GREAT BRITAIN.

FOLDING BOAT.

' SIIE'ECIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 224,3 46, dated February 10, 1880.

Application filed May 10, 1879. Patented in England, July 30, 1878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN WALLACE Done- LAs MCDONALD, ofBembridge, in the Isle of Wight, Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, rear-admiral in the royalnavy, have invented new and useful Improvements in Folding Boats, of which the following is a specification.

My improved folding boats or vessels are composed of longitudinal sections'or parts,

(tapered or gradually narrowed toward each opened out the curvature of the bottom of the boat, as seen in side elevation, will conform (orapproximately so) to the curvature of the lower edge of the longitudinal section or part constituting the juxtaposed side, as seen in side elevation, when the vessel is open, and the curvature of each side of the boat or vessel, as seen in plan, will correspond (or approximately so) to the curvature of the outer edge of the juxtaposed longitudinal section form-' ing part of the bottom of :the boat or vessel,

as seen in plan, when the vessel is open.

The boat or vessel may be kept expanded or opened out for use by thwarts and stretchers.

The material employed in the construction of the longitudinal parts or sections is wood, steel, or other substance such as will automatically resume its normal flat or plane form when the thwart or stretcher is withdrawn.

Referring to the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 shows, inside elevation, avessel constructed according to my invention, the vessel being'in this view shown open. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same vessel, also showing it open,but with'the masts lyingdown.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the vessel, showing it piece.

closed up or folded. Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view, showing the vessel closed up or folded.

Inthis vessel the bottom 1 is made in one It maybe of pine, or mahogany, or other suitable wood. The shape of the bottom is seen in Fig. 3 by the outer line, 2, which indicates the configuration of the bottom. To

each side of the bottom is hinged orjointed,

the bottom of the boat.

by a continuous hinge or joint of leather, 3, a side, 4, which may be of similar"material to the bottom of the boat or vessel, or of other analogous or suitable material. The lower edge of each of these sides is originally made of precisely the. same configuration 'as the corfrespondi'ng or juxtaposed side of the bottom 1, so that, when a side and bottom are both flat, if one be laid upon the other the curved edges of the same, respectively, shall coincide, or nearly coincide.

The mode in which I have found it convenient in practice to form the hinges or joints is shown clearly in Fig. 4, where?) 3 are strips of leather prepared in oil in the same way as leather is prepared for making fire hose, (leather pipes.) In England this leather is called hose-butts.

5 and 6 are battens or strips of substance able to bend to thecurve of the bottom of the boator vessel Without breaking, and'suffr,

' about twenty-four hours it maybe readily bent to the required curvature.

The strips of leather are secured to the curved sides of the bottom 1 by copper rivets or nails passed through the battens 5,through the leather, and through the bottom 1, and

carefully clinched or burred. The sides 4 are similarly fastened to the strips of leather. The sides are shorter than the bottom of the boat or vessel. At the ends chocks 7 and 8 are secured to the bottom 1. A

It will be evident that a boat or vessel constructed as just described may he opened out,

as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and may be kept so opened out by a variety of devices or contrivances. In the boator vessel illustrated, 'pieces of wood'or metal 9, which I call spreaders, are secured by hinges 10 to the inside of These spreaders are. provided with mast clasps or clamps 11, in

which the lower ends of the masts fit and are 5 held. The form of these spreaders, as shown iuFig. 2,.is such that, supposing the boat or vessel tobe closed or folded up, as shown in Fig. 3, if the mastsbe now pulled up they-will, ins-conjunction with the spreaders, operate as Ice levers for partially opening the boat or vessel, the sides of which will, as the masts are raised,

- be gradually moved apart by the curved porterial must be of precisely similar form tions 9 of the spreaders.

, The vessel may be kept open by thwarts or cross-seats 12. A convenient mode of guiding and supporting these thwarts or cross-seats is by risings or ledges 13, fastened to the sides of the vessel and having tapered pieces of wood or guides 14 above them. In the ends of the thwarts or cross-seats recesses are formed, corresponding in length to the width at the base of the tapered guides 14, so that as the ends of the thwarts or seats are pressed down they are guided into their proper places.

15 and 16 are stays or ropes for keeping the masts up, as shown in Fig. 1.

In some cases I construct boats or vessels in longitudinal sections or parts, connected together by continuous longitudinal water-proof hinges on my plan, to close up into a hollow form somewhat resembling that of the wellknown eigarship. Such boats, of different sizes, may be stowed one within another, so as to economize space.

It is to be understood that in all cases the juxtaposed edges of stiff bendable elastic mathat is to say, for a straight joint the two edges must be straight; for a curved joint the two edges must have precisely the same curve as I have above explained with reference to the examples illustrated.

In making the curved edges of the bottoms and sides of vesselsv such as those I have illustrated, the curve should correspond to the natural curvature of a strip of wood when bent by moving its two extremities toward each other.

In practice, I find that I can obtain a suitable and proper curve, which gives good results, as follows: I draw a straight line, corresponding to the longitudinal center of the vessel. Across this line and at right angles thereto I draw three other lines, at equal distances apart. The two outer of these crosslines correspond to the extremities of the intended vessel. On each of these two outer lines I make a mark at a distance above the longitudinal line equalto one-half of the width at the narrowest part of the intended vessel. On the central cross-line, above the longitudinal line, Iplaee a mark at a distance above the longitudinal line equal to half the greatest width of the bottom of the intended vessel. I then lay a straight strip of wood on the surface so marked, and by moving the two ends of this piece of wood toward each other I bend the wood so that it shall touch the three points above indicated, and shall produce a fair curve, like that given by a penning batten. The bend of the wood then correctly indicates a suitable curve.

Sometimes I cover the wood or stiff bendable elastic material (except metal) with canvas fastened on by means of marine glue. Such a covering may be used on one side only of the wood, or on both sides thereof.

Sometimes I make the stiff bendable elastic portions of my boats of two thicknesses or layers of wood secured together by marine glue, with the grain of the one thickness or layer of wood at right angles to or crosswise of the other thickness or layer of wood, and there may be a layer of canvas interposed between the two thicknesses or layers of wood, or not.

It is to be understood that I do not confine myself to the use of wood in forming the stiff bendable elastic portions forming the sides and bottoms of my boats or vessels.

What I claim is 1. The combination, in a folding boat or vessel, of longitudinal sections or parts of stiff bendable elastic material having the juxtaposed edges of similar shape or curvature, and continuous water-proof hinges or joints connecting the said longitudinal sections or parts together, substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described.

2. The combination, in a folding boat or vessel, of a bottom, 1, of wood or other stifl bendable elastic material curved at both its longitudinal edges, two sides, 4, of similar material and having their lower edges similarly curved, and two continuous hinges or joints of leather, 3, connecting said sides to said bottom, substantially as described.

3. The combination, in a folding boat or vessel, of a bottom, 1, ofwood or other stift'bendable elastic material curved at both its longitudinal edges, two sides, 4, of similar material and having their lower edges similarly curved, two continuous hinges or joints of leather, 3, connecting said sides to said bottom,'risings or ledges l3, fastened to said sides, tapered pieces or guides 14, fixed above said risings or ledges, and thwarts or cross-seats with recessed ends, all substantially as and for the purposes specified.

4. The combination, in a folding boat or vessel, of a bottom, 1, of wood or other stifl bendable elastic material curved at both its longitudinal edges, 'two sides, 4, of similar material and having their lower edges similarly curved, two continuous hinges or joints of leather, 3, connecting said sides to said bottom, means for keeping said boat or vesselopen, and spreaders or openers 9, secured by hinges to the bottom of the beat, all substantially as and for the purposes specified.

J. W. D. MCDONALD.

Witnesses:

J. J. BROUGHAM,

Clerk to Mr. lV. Lloyd Wise, Adelphi, London, W. 0. A. HARDING,

6 Llamnore Street,

Oaledom'om Road, N. 

